Manufacture of bon bon crackers



May 2, 9 P. s. POWLING 3,316,818

MANUFACTURE OF BON BGN CRAGKERS Filed May 14, 1964 2 Sheets-$heet 1INVENTOR Pb I L 9 Steward Fowl/n3 BY FLM JW & MW

ATTQR EY y 1967 P. s. POWLING 3,316,818

MANUFACTURE OF BON BON CRACKERS Filed May 14, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 E f63 ||l |m|| 60a C) N mm. 6% ,n

I '1 60 I 7 L INVEN o PhiLLp Seumxd oil/ra ATTORNEY Patented May 2, 1967 3,316,818 MANUFACTURE OF BON BON CRACKERS Philip Steward Powling,Ilford, England, assignor, by mesne assignments, to Tom Smith & Co.Limited Filed May 14, 1964, Ser. No. 367,451 10 Claims. (Cl. 93-1) Thisinvention relates to methods of making bon-bon crackers, sometimescalled Christmas crackers or a cosaques, which will hereinafter bereferred to generally as crackers.

Crackers can be made in a number of ways, using different kinds andarrangements of materials but in a typical method of construction arectangular sheet of material such as crepe paper, which forms theoutside of the finished cracker is assembled with similar sheets ofplain paper. A smaller sheet of cardboard forming a stiffener is placedover the middle third of the sheet. A snap, which gives thecharacteristic crack when the cracker is pulled is assembled with thesheets. This assembly of parts is referred to in the trade as-asticking.

However the sticking is made, it is shaped to form a cylinder and aconstruction or Waist is made roughly a third of the distance along thelength of the cylinder. The constriction is as tight as may be, and itis made by an operator winding a string around the cylinder, usuallytwice, and pulling the string endwise. Once the one constriction hasbeen made the filling of the cracker, consisting of novelties, favours,and the like are dropped into the centre of the cylinder and a secondwaist is formed.

In my copending application No. 24,946/61 (see the corresponding US.Patent No. 3,264,797) I have described a method of and apparatus fortying crackers by which this serious limitation can be largely overcomein which the cracker stickings are first made into a cylinder and whilstso formed the waists are made by means comprising two relatively movablesupport members, corelike means presenting a series of spans defining apolygonal figure of a size suitable to permit the insertion therein of acracker cylinder, each said span extending between an attachment pointon the first support member and an attachment point on the secondsupport member, relative movement of said members being effective tocause the size of the figure to be reduced, thereby creating a waist ina cylinder inserted within the figure.

In accordance with the present invention means are provided for rapidlyopening the polygon, preferably automatically once the waists have beentied.

Features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from thefollowing description of an embodiment thereof given, by way of example,in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the clamping device showing theautomatic release mechanism, and

FIGURE 2 is an opposite side view of the release mechanism showing thelever arrangement in more detail.

In the manufacture of crackers by the apparatus of Patent No. 3,264,797,the cracker cylinder is held at its ends by two clamping devicesoperable by two hand levers and the cylinder is constricted by two waistforming devices operable by two further hand levers, the two clampingdevices and tWo waist forming devices being mounted each on one of twosliding carriages. To release the completed cracker after the Waistforming operation, the operator returns the operating levers of thewaist forming devices to their initial position, then releases thelevers of the clamping devices and finally slides the carriages awayfrom the centre of the machine and removes the cracker.

The present invention affords means by which this operation can becarried out more quickly by arranging that each clamping device isautomatically released on operation of the waist forming device.

In the accompanying drawing are shown certain parts of a completemachine of the kind which is otherwise as shown in said US. Patent No.3,264,797, and reference is directed to that patent for a more completedescription of the machine and its operation.

For the purpose of the present invention, each clamping device 8 hasassociated with it a V-shaped lever 60 pivotally mounted on the carriage7 carrying the device. One arm 60a of the lever is attached to thedevice by a pin 61 on the device located in a slot 62 formed in the arm60a, and the other arm 60b is positioned to engage the operating lever37 of the waist forming device 33 during the end part of its stroke. Thedevice 8 is retained in its operative position by a suitably shapedspring-loaded latch 63 engaging a notch 20b in the disc 20 of the deviceand also cooperating with an inclined guide 64 attached to the supportof device 33. When the arm 60b is engaged by the lever 37, the lever 60is caused to pivot about its axis, and device 8 to move toward thedevice 33. This movement firstly brings disc 23 into contact with thespans of cord of device 33, thereby to provide a sharp edge to the outerportions of the waist; and secondly brings the latch 63 into contactwith the guide 64 and causes the latch to pivot against its bias thusallowing disc 20 and handle 21 to return automatically under its ownbias to an inoperative position.

In this way, the separate operation of returning the levers of theclamping devices is eliminated thereby speeding up the operation of thewaist forming apparatus.

In a modification of the arrangement (not shown), the arcuate portion15a of the upper clamping member 15 has secured to its face a length ofrubber strip; the strip is of substantially the same width as portion15a but its length is such that it extends downwardly on both sides ofthe mandrel 9. During movement of the clamping members to theiroperative position, the lower two arouate portions 15a guide the freeends of the strip around the cylinder until, in the clamping position ofthe device, they are positioned adjacent each other. It is furtherarranged that one of the lower clamping members is effective after theother lower member thereby to avoid the formation of folds in theclamped portion of the cracker cylinder.

In a further modification (not shown) the disc 23 has an annular portionof diameter equal to that of the mandrel and extending towards themandrel; the portion provides a bearing surface for the cracker cylinderin the region of the tapered portion 9a of the mandrel.

I claim:

1. Apparatus for forming the waist in a cracker, comprising supportmembers adapted to embrace a cracker cylinder, waist-forming meansoperative on relative movement of said members, a device for supportingand clamping an end of the cracker cylinder prior to and during thewaist-forming operation and means operative upon relative movement ofsaid members to release said clamping device after the waist has beenformed.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said clamping device includesa support mandrel for insertion into an end of the cracker cylinder, aplurality of clamping arms co-operating with said mandrel to clamp thecylinder therebetween upon operation of an actuating member and meansfor locking the actuating member in an operative position.

3. Apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said clamping device isbiased to a position away from said Waistforming means and is movableagainst its bias to release said locking means.

4. Apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said rer 3 lease meansincludes a two armed, pivotally mounted, lever, one of said arms beingcoupled to the clamping device and the other engaging the actuatingmember of said waist-forming means toward the end of its operativestroke whereby to cause the lever to pivot and the clamping device tomove against its bias.

'5. Apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said locking means includesa pivotally mounted latch member sooperating with the actuating memberof said clamping device and arranged so as to be moved to an inoperativeposition by a fixed guide member during movement of the device.

6. Apparatus according to claim 1, and including a support ringco-operating with said mandrel and of diameter substantially equalthereto, said ring being inserted into the cracker cylinder to provide asupport therefor adjacent to the stiffener during the waist-formingoperation and being brought into contact with the waist-forming meansprior to the release of said clamping device thereby to provide awell-defined Waist.

7. Apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the freeend of said mandrelis tapered to facilitate entry thereof into the cracker cylinder andwherein said ring has an 4 annular portion adapted to surround thetapered portion of the mandrel in the operative position of the clampingdevice.

8. Apparatus according to claim 7, and including three clamping arms,each arm having an arcuate bearing portion.

9. Apparatus according to claim 8, wherein one of said arms has securedto its arcuate portion a length of rubber strip which extends on bothsides of said mandrel and the free ends of which are positioned adjacenteach other in the operative position of the clamping device.

10. Apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the other two arms arearranged to move into their operative positions sequentially.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 4/1895 Bird 93813/1953 Harrison 93--1 X

1. APPARATUS FOR FORMING THE WAIST IN A CRACKER, COMPRISING SUPPORTMEMBERS ADAPTED TO EMBRACE A CRACKER CYLINDER, WAIST-FORMING MEANSOPERATIVE ON RELATIVE MOVEMENT OF SAID MEMBERS, A DEVICE FOR SUPPORTINGAND CLAMPING AN END OF THE CRACKER CYLINDER PRIOR TO AND DURING THEWAIST-FORMING OPERATION AND MEANS OPERATIVE UPON RELATIVE MOVEMENT OFSAID MEMBERS TO RELEASE SAID CLAMPING DEVICE AFTER THE WAIST HAS BEENFORMED.